Byzantine Catholic Mission
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Holy Resurrection Byzantine Catholic Mission |
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O ye incorporeal angels who stand before the throne of God, luminous with the brilliance thereof and everlastingly shining with radiance. As secondary luminaries, entreat Christ, that He grant unto our souls peace and great mercy. O immortal messengers of the truly incorruptible Life, ye most blessed ones who received life from the first Life, ye have become holy beholders of the eternal Wisdom, full of light, and reflecting lamps shown forth as is meet. O ye archangels and angels, principalities, thrones, dominions, six-winged seraphim, and divine, many-eyed cherubim, instruments of wisdom, virtues and powers most divine. Pray ye to Christ, that He grant our souls peace and great mercy. Archives:
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HOLY RESURRECTION BYZANTINE CATHOLIC MISSION
GLORY TO JESUS CHRIST! GLORY FOREVER!
DIVINE LITURGY BEGINS AT 4 P.M. EVERY SUNDAY
EVERY THIRD SUNDAY IS FOOD SUNDAY: BRING NON-PERISHABLE FOODS OR ITEMS FOR THE NEEDY AND A DISH TO SHARE: We always welcome all visitors among us! We hope that you find our worship true and reverent and our people friendly and cordial. If you are seeking a spiritual home, we would be honored by your presence in our family. We are glad you chose to worship with us. SEPTEMBER 14, 2003; EXALTATION OF THE HOLY CROSS
Divine Liturgy Intention: If you would like the Divine Liturgy offered for a loved one, deceased or living, please give your offering to Father and obtain a Liturgy intention card from William Gogar. Please write down the intention so it can be put in the bulletin.
OUR OFFERINGS
THE FEAST OF THE EXALTATION OF THE PRECIOUS AND LIFE-GIVING CROSS
A tradition well established in the sixth century relates that Helen, mother of Emperor Constantine the Great, discovered near
Golgotha the three crosses on which Christ and the two thieves had been crucified. Bishop Macarios identified the true Cross
of Christ as the one whose touch returned a dying woman to perfect health.
The Holy Cross was preserved in the Basilica of the Resurrection in Jerusalem until May 4, 614, when the Persians
conquered the city and burned down the basilica. In 628, Emperor Heraclius defeated Chosroes, king of Persia, and returned the
Holy Cross to Jerusalem. It is reported that the mighty emperor, arrayed with precious jewels and clothed in formal imperial
attire, carried the Cross to the church door, where an invisible hand stopped him. Zachary, bishop of Jerusalem, said to him:
“Beware, your Majesty! These precious vestments and priceless jewels are the marks of human pride: This does not conform
with the poverty of Jesus Christ nor with his humility in bearing the Cross.” The emperor immediately stripped himself
of all his adornments, borrowed a simple cloak, and walked barefoot to Golgotha, where he planted the Cross. The faithful
bowed their heads to the ground and said, “We bow profoundly to your Cross, O Christ! And we sing a hymn of glory to
your resurrection.”
A piece of the Holy Cross was brought to Rome in the seventh century by Pope Sergius I, who was of Byzantine origin. He
ordered it to be exposed to the veneration of the faithful in the Church of the Savior.
The Feast of the Holy Cross has a great importance in the Byzantine as well as the Latin churches. It is, in a sense, a
renewal of Holy Friday, with the difference that Holy Friday commemorates Redemption by the blood and death of Christ, while
today the Cross is seen as a sign of glory and victory: the glory of Christ and Christianity and our own victory over evil
and sin.
The office of the day recalls various prefigurations of the Cross in the Old Testament: the Tree of Paradise, which caused
our fall, while the Tree of the Cross is the instrument of our salvation; the Ark of Noah, which saved only the just, while
the Cross embraces both just and sinner; Jacob, who stretched out his arms to bless Joseph’s children; Moses, who did the
same to open a road through the Red Sea so that the people of Israel could be saved, and who sweetened the bitter waters of
Marah with his rod; Moses again, who made water gush from the rock with his staff, and who sustained Israel in battle
against Amalek by extending his arms in prayer; the flowering rod of Aaron, and the brazen serpent he placed in the midst of
the camp to save those dying from poison.
With the Cross, suffering appears no longer as the work of a blind Destiny that crushes us and leads us to revolt: It
becomes a proof of love, the close imitation of Christ, the cleansing of sin, a sharing in the redemption of mankind, and a
ladder to the summit of heavenly glory.
THE VALUE OF AN EXAMPLE
And to Natasha, “whom I beat terribly and who was willing to be beaten a third time for her faith, I want to say,
‘Natasha, largely because of you, my life is now changed and I am a fellow believer in Christ. I have a new life before
me. God has forgiven me. I hope you can also. Thank you Natasha, wherever you are. I will never forget you.’”
These are the concluding statements in a book titled The Persecutor, by Sergei Kourdakov. In the book, Kourdakov says
that because of his outstanding leadership qualities, he was selected Communist Youth Leader of every school he attended and
sent by the Secret Service Police to form and lead a goon squad to terrorize and arrest Christians who met in secret to
worship God.
Kourdakov writes that in one raid under his command, young men were beaten until their faces were a bloody pulp; knives were
used on women. On one of these raids, he saw a beautiful woman thrown so hard against the wall of a room that she fell
semi-conscious. On the next raid, he found this girl again and beat her until pieces of bloody flesh came off in his hands. He
never expected to see her again, but he caught her at another Bible session. Natasha’s courage shook Kourdakov
completely.
Eventually, while on sea duty in the armed services, he escaped to Canada. Inspired by Natasha’s example, he became a
believer in Christ. The faith and courage of this girl changed the life of a hardened and brutal atheist.
Last updated: 14-Sep-2003 |
